Iron ore fuels $65b dividend windfall Share Investors will share in a $65 billion windfall in shareholder returns from the big three iron ore miners, with dividend forecasts for BHP Group, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group upgraded by analysts after prices soared by more than 20 per cent in a week. In a sign that the market expects demand and prices to remain strong for some time – and that tax revenue and dividends will continue to be pumped into the rebounding economy – a new generation of small producers is looking to move previously uneconomic mines into production. The global benchmark for spot market traded iron ore, S&P Global Platts’ IODEX 62 per cent iron ore index, rose $US16.80 or 7.9 per cent to a record high $US229.55 a tonne on Monday, and is up more than 23 per cent in the past week.